Self-sealing dispensing device



Patented Feb. 2, 1954 UN I T ED PAT T OFFICE I 2,667,986 SELF-SEALING DISPENSING DEVIGE Harold .N. Berel'son, Los Angeles, Calif.

Application December 22, 1951, Serial No. 262,934

11 Claims. l

This invention relates to a closure for vials and the like and particularly to such a closure embodying a self-sealing dispensing device which is especially useful in dispensing serums and the like from a vial into a hypodermic syringe.

A practic commonly followed for transferring serum or other liquid from a vial into a hypodermic syring is to provide the vial with a stopper embodying a resilient diaphragm which is impaled upon the needle of the syringe andthen the syringe piston retracted to suck serum from the bottle through the syringe needle and into the syringe. This practice has certain disadvantages in that it dulls the hypodermic needle thereby making more painful the penetration of the pa-tient s body by the needle. It has the further disadvantage of subjecting the contents of the vial to the possibility-oi contamination by syringe needles .inserted into the vial.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a self-sealing dispensing device suitable for stoppering a vial which will permit a liquid to be readily dispensed from said vial to a syringe but which will eliminate the disadvantages above pointed out.

A prior device which sought :to achieve said object and. which is shown in U. S. Letters Pat.- ent No. 2,342,215, embodied a needle in the stopper upon which a covering diaphragm is im paled by pressing the mouth of the syringe the-reagainst in order .to produce a communication between the interior or the vial and the syringe for drawing a charge .of liquid from the vial into the syringe. Th diaphragm in said .device had a mouth friotionally receiving thesyri-nge neck .to accomplish the stripping of the diaphragm from the needle when the syringe was withdrawn from contact with the stopper.

It is another object of the invention to provide animprovement over this prior device.

It isalso an object of the invention to pro? vide .a self-sealing dispensingdevice suitable for stopperlng a vial and operatingin a. similar manner to the above described patented devic but in which the diaphragm is of relatively thin, simple construction and which will not depend-upon friction between the syringe neck and the diaphragm, when withdrawing said syringe from contact with the latter, in order to assure that the diaphragm will be quickly stripped from the needle of the device.

It i another object of the invention to provide a self-s in dispensing device-suit b Q i- SQI ing as a vial stopper and embodyin a vhollow needle mounted on said stopper and enclosed by a diaphragm mounted on said stopper so that the diaphragm may be impaled on said needle by pressing a syringe neck against said d-iapl i-ragm and in which device a separate resiliently expansive element is provided between the steppe-rand the diaphragm and upon which element prepon derant dependence is placed for supplying the force needed to strip the diaphragm from the needle quickly enough to prevent contamination of the latter or leakage therefrom when the syringeis Withdrawn.

Phis application is a continuation-impart 0f my co-pending application for U; S. Letters Pat.- ent, Serial No. 32 4-1 9, filed June 1, 1 948, on a Her-metically Sealed Fluid Dispenser, now abandoned.

The manner of accomplishing the foregoing objects as well as further objects and advantages will be made manifest in the following description taken in connection with the accompany-ing drawing-inwhich Fig. 1 is an enlarged vertical sectional view takenon theaxis of a preferred .formof thepresent invention.

Fig; 2 is a view similar to Fig. 1 with the invention inverted and showing the diaphragm of the device impaled upon the hollowneedle whereof by the applicationrof .the'neckofa hypodermic syringe, as when utilizing the invention, ltQ .delivera chargeof liquid ,tosaid syringe, and, illustrating the compression .of a tubular rubber spring located between the stopper base and the diaphragm .to build up an expans v force in said spring which .will Quickly strip the diaphragm sfrom the hollow needle when pres ure '9 the syringe against said diaphragm is relaxed.

Fig. .3 isa view similar to Fiex lshowi e. a dified form .of the inventionin hic oth e. sive element depended u on refe -strip ing t 41 phra m. from the hol ow ne d c mprise a coil sp ing whi h s cen e d. o h hollow needle.

Fig. 4 is a view similar to Fig. 1 and illustrates a s cond mo ifi d fo of. t e invention in. whic a still different form ,cf spring element ,is prov eo by the stopp r base @r'thediap r sm :fior compression between the base andsa central per i n of t d aphra m w e the la t r is impal d n the p er ointed end 0f e low needl of the deviceso as to dlligkly strip the diaphragm from t e n edle wh the p es ur of t lsyrinse against said diaphra m is relaxed.

Fig. 5 is a horizontal sectional view taken on the lined- Fi asivinsview o hasprine element emh diedin th js co dm difie orm of! the invention.

Referring specifically to the drawings, the preferred embodiment of the invention illustrated in Figs. 1 and 2 is seen to comprise a stopper III for a bottle I I having a neck l2 on the upper end of which is formed a radial flange I3.

The stopper It includes a base I5, a hollow needle IT, a diaphragm I8 formed of resilient material such as soft rubber or a synthetic equivalent thereof, and a resiliently expansive element I9 located between said base and said. diaphragm.

The base I6 is preferably formed of a relatively rigid plastic material and includes a hollow plug 26 which fits within the bottle neck I2. The plug 20 has a bottom wall 2! and an outwardly offset annular wall 22 at its upper end, a lower shoulder 23 of which rests on top of the bottle neck I2 when the plug 20 is in place. The bottom wall 2I of the plug 26 has an axial hole 24, in an upper counter-bored portion of which the lower end of the hollow needle I! is pressed to provide a permanent mounting of said needle therein with the passage in said needle communicating through hole 24 with the interior of the bottle II.

The needle I"! is thus permanently mounted axially on the bottom wall H of the plug 23 and has a sharply pointed upper end portion 25 which'terminates approximately at the level of the upper edge of wall 22.

The diaphragm I8 is preferably flat and thin and of a highly flexible character, and overlies wall 22 so as to rest on the upper edge of this. A peripheral wall 33 is molded integral with said diaphragm which snugly conforms to the outer face of the wall 22 so as to form a closed chamber 3| between the base I6 and the diaphragm I8. The upper face of the diaphragm It may be flat or it may have a boss 32 formed centrally 1 thereon for the purpose of centering a syringe 33 with respect to the stopper Ill.

The resiliently expansive element I9 preferably comprises a tube formed of the same material as in diaphragm I8 and molded integral therewith so that said tube extends downwardly from said diaphragm concentric therewith and surrounding the hollow needle H, with the lower end of said element either very close to or engaging said bottom base wall 2! as shown in Fig. 1.

The stopper I is preferably permanently secured to the bottle II by a metal ferrule 34 having an upper flange 35 which extends inwardly over the diaphragm I8 and wall 22 and a lower flange 36 which is rolled inwardly beneath the bottle neck flange I3 after the stopper IE] and ferrule 34 have been assembled on the bottle i2 as shown in Fig. l.

' The stopper It has particular utility in hermetically closing vials for holding serums and other liquids injected hypodermically, and offers a means of dispensing serum from the vial into a hypodermic syringe such as the syringe 33 in a manner illustrated in Fig. 2 and which will now be described.

Assuming that the bottle II is a serum vial, this is inverted and may be so held in a clamp or other support (not shown). The exposed surface of the diaphragm I8 is now sterilized as by wiping this with a piece of cotton saturated with alcohol after which the hypodermic syringe 33, with its piston pushedentirely inward, is inverted and the neck 40 of the syringe is applied upwardly to the diaphragm I8 so as to be centered relative thereto by fitting the neck 40 over the boss 32. A pressure is then exerted upwardly through the syringe 33 to the diaphragm i3 de- 4 pressing the latter as shown in Fig. 2 and there"- by impaling said diaphragm on the pointed end portion 25 of the hollow needle I1.

Due to its location between the base It and the diaphragm I8 the resilient expansive element I9 is compressed by depression of said diaphragm causing said element to assume a shortened and laterally expanded shape as shown in Fig. 2, owing to its length being decreased by substantially the distance said diaphragm is depressed. This compression of expansive element I9 builds up a substantial resilient expansive force in said element opposing the pressure of the syringe 33 against said diaphragm.

With the syringe 33 so related to the stopper II), the piston of the syringe 33 is retracted to suck from the vial II a load of serum which flows through the hollow needle Ii into the syringe.

As soon as this hasbeen accomplished, the syringe is lowered from the position in which it is shown in Fig. 2 as rapidly as is consistent with preventing the spilling of serum from the inverted syringe. The diaphragm I8 tends to resume its normal shape but the friction between the needle and the diaphragm opposes this. It is to be noted that the axial force exerted by the diaphragm alone is insufficient to strip the central portion of the diaphragm from the pointed end 25 of the needle I? with sufficient rapidity to cause this stripping to keep pace with the normal speed with which a person withdraws the syringe downwardly away from the diaphragm I8 after filling said syringe.

It is necessary, therefore, to amplify the stripping force supplied'by the diaphragm itself in order to prevent accidental leakage of liquid from the needle or contamination of the latter by the removal of the syringe from contact with said diaphragm before the stripping of said diaphragm from the point of said needle is accomplished. Such an amplifying force is provided by the expansive element I9. The expansive energy stored up in this element, when it is compressed by the diaphragm I8 as shown in Fig. 2, results in this element exerting such a substantial axial pressure outwardly against the central portion of the diaphragm I8, that the addition of this force to the axial force exerted by the tendency of the diaphragm I8 to resume its. normal shape, produces a combined axial force which strips the diaphragm I3 from the pointed end 25 of the needle so quickly that whenever the minimum degree of care is exercised in withdrawing the syringe 33 downwardly after filling the same, the diaphragm will have been stripped from the pointed upper end 25 of the hollow needle I! before contact is broken between the diaphragm and the syringe.

It is thus seen that with the construction of the present invention, the diaphragm I8 may be made very thin and flexible in character so that it will exert a relatively light axial force on the middle portion of the diaphragm tending to strip this from the needle I'I, while major dependence is placed upon the expansive element I9 to provide practically the entire axial force required to strip the diaphragm from the needle with such speed as to insure that the diaphragm will remain in contact with the neck 40 of the syringe 33 until the diaphragm It has been stripped from the extremity of the pointed end 25 of said needle.

In Fig. 3 a modified form of the invention is shown comprising a stopper 50 which is adapted 'diaphragmof the invention equipped with aboss 32, although such a boss serves "a very useful function in permitting a :person using the invention to center the neck 49 of thesyringe 3-3 in concentric relation with the hollow needleof the stopper by the sense of feeling,thuseliminating the necessity of paying particular attention to the matter of getting the syringe -co-axially related with the stopper before employing the latter to dispense a load of serum into the syringe.

The diaphragm 58 has a peripheral wall 60 molded integral therewith which surrounds an annular offset wall Bl formed on the upper end of the base 56. Also moldedintegral with the diaphragm 58 is a short, downwardly extending nipple 52 which receives and centers the upper end of an expansive element 63 whichcomprises a wire spring coiled about the needle 51 with its upper end disposed close to or engaging the diaphragm 58 and with itslower end resting on a bottom wall 64 of the base 56. Thestopper 50 is secured permanently onthevial or bottle 5! by a-ferrule65 which is identical in construction with ferrule 34.

The mode of 'operation'of the stopper 59 in delivering-a load of serum from a vial to the hypodermic syringe 33 is identical to that of stopper it as abovedesoribed. 'Inother words the vial of bottle5l is inverted and the neck "40 of syringe 33 pressed against the diaphragm '59 with the syringe in centered relation to the stopper 5% thereby impaling the diaphragm 58 on the hollow needle El and compressing the spring 33. The expansive force stored in the spring 63 by this compression causes it to supply a preponderent portion of the axial force applied to the diaphragm 58 tending to strip this from the needleil-as pressure of the syringe against the diaphragm-58 is relaxed incidental to theremoval of thesyringe from contact with this diaphragm.

A second modified form of the invention, as illustrated in Figs. 4 and 5, comprises a'stopper '10 which is employed in stoppering a vial or bottle H havinga-neck "1-2 from the upper end of which a flange 13 extends radially outwardly.

The stopper includes a base '14 which is formed of the same material 'as'base Hi, this base including a hollow plug which fits within the neck 72 of the bottle 1! and has a bottom wall it in which a central hole 11 is formed, in an upper counter-bored portion of which a hollow needle i2, having a pointed upper end 19, is pressed to permanently mount said needle in said base. The upper end of the plug 15 has a radial extension 80 which overlies and engages the upper end-of bottleneck l2 and from which two arcuate peripheral walls'tl extend upwardly, these being separated. by slots 82. The slots .82 extend downwardly to the level of an upper face Beef the plug 15. Resting on the face 34 with its opposite ends extending into slots 32 is anexpansive element 90 comprisingan elliptical leaf spring including an upper bow .91 the central portion 'of whichis enlarged andhas a hole "92, and lower wings 93 which are bent 6. downwardlyand inwardly from :opposite ends of the bow 9i.

Covering the .upper end of the base 14 is a diaphragm 96 which is preferably thin and =01 relatively resilient rubber or a synthetic equivalent, this diaphragm being molded flat and having a syringe centering boss 9'! extending upwardly from the upper surface thereof and also having a peripheral wall 98 molded integral therewith extendingdownwardly to snu l embrace the walls 81. The entire stopper =10 is held in place on the bottle neck 12 by a ferrule 99-which is identical with the ferrule 34.

The manner in which the stopper 19 is actuated bythe application-of a syringe 33 thereto is illustrated in :broken lines in Fig. 4, it being understood that vial -'H and syringe 33 are both inverted when the-stopper 10 isthus actuated-to deliver a load of serum or other liquid from the vial "H to the syringe 3-3. As indicatedin broken linesin Fig. 4, a depression of the diaphragm 96 by the applicationthereto of the neck 49 of the syringe 33 in centered relation with boss 91 depresses the diaphragm 96 and :the middle portion'of the expansive element 99 so as to cause the pointed end 19 of the needle 18 to extend through the hole 92 in said element and impale the diaphragm 96 on said needle. "The expansive element '99 is :compressed by this depression of the diaphragm 9.6 so as to exert a substantial expansive pressure against the middle portion of the diaphragm 96 while said diaphragm is so depressed, as shown in broken lines in Fig. '4. This pressure of the expansive element 99 is sufiicient to cause the diaphragm 93 to remain pressed against the neck 49 of the syringe 33 when the pressure of the latter against said diaphragmis relaxed so that contact of the syringe 33 with said diaphragm is not broken until the latter has been completely stripped from the pointed upper end 19 of the hollow needle 18. The bent ends of the element '90 are disposed sufficiently close to the resilient wall 98 so as to keep the hole 92 in said element always substantially concentric with the needle '18 so that, whenever the stopper 19 is actuated to drawaload of liquidintoa hypodermic syringe, the needle point '19 will always pass freely through. hole 92 When the element. 9i, is in its fully compressed position as shown in broken linesin Fig. .4, the bent ends thereof may extend slightly into the resilient Wall 98 which, of course, aids in centering the element 9.9 with respect to the needle 18 when this element is allowed to expand to its normal-shape as showninFig. 4. While this view shows the element as normally shaped to hold the diaphragm .96 in slightly arched shape, this is not essential to the invention and the modified form of the invention embodied in the stopper iii may perform its function equally well with the diaphragm 96 normally com-.

pletely flat :as shown in the stopper ID or stopper 59 and described hereinabove.

Whilefor illustrative purposes the present invention has been described hereinabove as embodying a diaphragm made of resilient material which of itself exerts a force resisting the depression of the diaphragmand aiding in strippin the diaphragm from the needlewhen the diaphragm is released, it is quite practical in the present invention to utilize a diaphragm so thin and flexible that the diaphragm itself exerts practicallyno force tending tostrip the central portion of the diaphragm from the needle,

when the force impaling the same on said needle is relaxed. In such a form of the invention the entire force employed for stripping the central portion of the diaphragm from the needle would be supplied by the internal resilient element which is subject to compression between the base and the diaphragm substantially throughout the movement imparted to the diaphragm in order to impale the same on said needle.

Indeed, one of the advantages of the present invention is the economy resulting from the fact that there is no need for-the diaphragm itself to contribute any substantial portion of the axial force required to strip the central portion of the diaphragm from the needle so that this diaphragm may be made exceedingly thin and yet perform its principal functions of hermetically enclosing the needle and positioning a thickened central portion of the diaphragm so that this may be readily impaled on the needle and then as quickly stripped therefrom by the energy stored up in the expansive element during the impaling movement.

The claims are:

1. A self-sealing dispensing device, comprising a rigid stopper adapted to fit within the neck of a bottle and having a central bore and a substantially flat bottom wall, a hollow needle axially mounted within said wall and communicating through said wall with the space therebeneath, said needle extending axially a substantial distance above said stopper wall, an imperforate deformable cap of flexible resilient material mounted on the upper end of said stopper in close fitting engagement therewith, said cap including an integral depressible diaphragm closing the space between said stopper and said cap and overlying the upper end of said needle, and an integral tubular extension depending from said diaphragm and surrounding said needle in spaced relation thereto, the bottom end of said tubular extension terminating in close proximity to the upper surface of a central portion of said fiat bottom wall of said stopper located beneath the bottom end of the tubular extension, said diaphragm being adapted to be impaled upon the upper end of said needle to cause the latter to penetrate the diaphragm for the delivery of liquid through said needle, the bottom end of said tubular cap extension engaging said stopper wall when said diaphragm is depressed and before said needle completely penetrates said diaphragm, further depression of said diaphragm, to completely force the needle therethrough, compressing and deforming said extension against said wall to build up a counterpressure in said extension exerted against said diaphragm, said counterpressure operating to expand said tubular extension and strip the diaphragm from the upper end of said needle when the pressure on the diaphragm is released.

2. A self-sealing dispensing device comprising a stopper adapted to fit the neck of a bottle, said stopper having a rigid base, a hollow needle mounted upon said base and connecting through the latter with the space therebeneath, a pointed end portion of said needle extending upward out of said base, an imperforate deformable diaphragm of resilient material mounted on and uniting with said base to completely enclose said needle, said diaphragm overlying the pointed end of said needle in a position to be impaled on said needle when depressed, and a resiliently expansive element disposed between said base and said diaphragm with its opposite ends adjacent respectively to said base and said diaphragm before said diaphragm is so depressed, the depression of said diaphragm as aforesaid to impale the latter on said needle developin a resiliently expansive force in said element which is applied to said diaphragm adjacent said needle with the effect of quickly stripping said diaphragm from the pointed end of said needle when said diaphragm is released from the pressure by which it had been depressed.

3. A combination as in claim 2, in which said expansive element is tubular in form and surrounds said needle.

, 4. A combination as in claim 3 in which said tubular expansive element is formed of soft rubher.

5. A combination as in claim 4 in which said tubular soft rubber element is supported by said diaphragm at the end of said element adjacent thereto.

6. A combination as in claim 5 in which said element is molded with and forms an integral part of said diaphragm.

7. A combination as in claim 2 in which said element comprises an expansive spring unconnected with said diaphragm and assembled between said base and said diaphragm in normally fully expanded condition with its opposite ends closely adjacent respectively to said base and said diaphragm.

8. A combination as in claim 2 in which said expansive element comprises a coiled expansive spring which is assembled between said base and said diaphragm with said spring coiled about said needle in normally fully extended condition and with its opposite ends closely adjacent respectively to said base and said diaphragm,

9. A combination as in claim 2 in which said expansive element comprises a leaf spring, an upper portion of which is positioned close to a central portion of said diaphragm and is apertured to receive the pointed end of said needle, terminal portions of said spring engaging said base in symmetrical relation with said needle with said spring normally in fully expanded condition. 7

10. A self-sealing dispensing device comprising a stopper adapted to fit the neck of a bottle, said stopper having a rigid base, a hollow needle mounted upon said base and connecting through the latter with the space therebeneath, a pointed end portion of said needle extending upward out of said base, an imperforate deformable diaphragm of resilient material mounted on and umting with said base to completely enclose said needle, said diaphragm overlying the pointed end of said needle in a position to be impaled on said needle when said diaphragm is depressed, and a resiliently expansive element disposed between said base and said diaphragm and positioned to be compressed between said diaphragm and said base practically throughout the entire axial movement of said diaphragm to effect said depression thereof, the compression of said element developing an expansive force in said element which is operative when the outside pressure against said diaphragm is relaxed, to quickly Isltriglsaid diaphragm from the pointed end of said ee e.

11. A self-sealing dispensing device comprising a stopper adapted to fit the neck of a bottle, said- 9 of said base, an imperforate deformable diaphragm of resilient material mounted on and uniting with said base to completely enclose said needle, said diaphragm overlying the pointed end of said needle in a position to be impaled on said needle when depressed by the open neck of a syringe applied thereto concentric with said needle, and a resiliently expansive element disposed between said base and said diaphragm and positioned to be compressed by said diaphragm when the latter is so depressed, said compression developing such a counter-expansive force in said element when complete penetration of said diaphragm by said needle is accomplished that said counter-expansive force comprises a preponderant portion of the forces operating in opposition to the depression of said diaphragm 10 whereby said forces are of a combined magnitude to quickly strip said diaphragm from the pointed end of said needle, when the pressure applied by said syringe is relaxed, so as to cause said diaphragm to normally remain in covering relation with said open neck of said syringe until after said diaphragm has been stripped from the pointed end of said needle.

HAROLD N. PERELSON.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 2,289,677 Perelson July 14, 1942 2,326,490 Perelson Aug. 10, 1943 2,342,215 Perelson Feb. 22, 1944 

